Huntsman said he had intended to fly to Turkey with members of the Air National Guard and join them for training missions but changed those plans when the Defense Department invited him to join other governors on this trip.

As commanders in chief of many of the troops being deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan and other parts of the Middle East, Huntsman said it's important for governors to understand first-hand what's happening on the front lines.

"We send men and women out to serve, and we need to understand what we're sending them into," the governor said. He described the message he's bringing to Utah troops as a simple one — "appreciation for what they're doing under very difficult circumstances."

Currently, about 440 Utah Air and Army National Guard members are stationed around the globe and in the United States in support of either Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) or Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF), which covers Afghanistan, the Philippines and several other countries, according to Guard spokesman Maj. Hank McIntire.

The Utah units now deployed overseas include I-Corps Artillery, 19th Special Forces, 2-211th Aviation's Alpha Company and the 300th Military Intelligence Brigade's 141st and 142nd battalions.

Since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, more than 5,000 Utah Guard members have served overseas, with more than 4,000 who served in Iraq, Kuwait, Afghanistan and other regions.

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